MOUNT SHASTA – After starting the season 0-5, the Yreka High Lady Miners girls varsity basketball team turned things around at the Mount Shasta Holiday Basketball Tournament.

With hopes of having the potential of a successful season, the winless start in five games was a disappointment for the Lady Miners.

Fortunately, a spark went on for Yreka in Mount Shasta as the team went 3-0 to earn the tourney title in round robin play.

On Thursday, Yreka downed Fall River 53-51 and took down Weed 35-29 on Friday after having lost to them twice this season. On Saturday, Yreka defeated host team Mount Shasta, who came into the game 2-0 at the tournament, by the score of 46-42.

Ashley Ensminger was named the MVP of the tournament while Justine Cota earned offensive team honors for the Lady Miners and Savanna Peters earned defensive honors for Yreka. Yreka is now 3-5 for the year. Mount Shasta downed Biggs on Thursday 41-20 and defeated Tulelake 53-39 on Friday and are now 4-3 for the season.

Yreka head coach Curly Culp said the three wins was certainly a positive development and commended the team for its effort and the way the players bounced back from a rough start.

"I'm very proud of our perseverance." he said. "It's a big boost for our team."

On Friday against Weed, Yreka played outstanding defense as they led 7-0 at the half and 21-5 after one. At the end of the third quarter Yreka led 25-14. In the fourth quarter Weed made a comeback but Yreka was able to hold on to the six-point win. Cota led Miner scorers with eight points. Ensminger and Erica Phillips each had seven points each for Yreka.

On Saturday, the game between the Lady Miners and Lady Bears was a defensive battle as both teams played tough defense and it was a challenge for either squad to get points on the board.

After a period of play Yreka led by only a single point at 8-7.

In the second quarter Yreka found more of a flow on offense and led 17-11 at the half. In the third period Yreka began the quarter by taking a 23-14 advantage with 5:06 left in the third quarter and was up 27-19 with around 1:46 left in the quarter.

By the end of the third Yreka led 28-23. Mount Shasta battled back in the fourth quarter, including a three by Kathryn Andrus as the game was knotted at 28-28 with a little more than six minutes left. While Mount Shasta briefly took the lead and the game was tied for portions of the fourth the Lady Miners held tough. A big play came with around 1:35 left in the game when Ensminger stole the ball and went down the court to make the basket to give Yreka a 42-38 lead as the squad held on for the victory by four points.

While pleased with the three wins, Culp said the teams still has work to do. While the squad has played outstanding defense, the offensive consistency the squad needs is not quite there yet, Culp said. He added the team is still missing too many shot but believes they certainly have the talent in place to improve on their offensive execution.

The Lady Miners next play starting on Thursday at a three-day tournament in Orland. Mount Shasta is at a tournament starting on Friday and is set to play Colusa.